NioCorp Developments Ltd (NB) Quote

Update from Niocorp after the presentation in Antwerp ( Contribution from my retired investment manager at my bank)
After a long search for funding, the time now seems more than ripe for this to materialize.
The circumstances namely demand for critical materials is high and dependence on China is imminent.
So it is now or never for Niocorp to finally give this valuable project a kick start

Some highlights from the presentation my advice is by all means to watch and listen to the youtube.

- The in-house production of critical materials and especially magnetic REEs is top priority of Trump and the White House.
- The urgency of a project like Niocorp's has permeated all levels of American politics.
- Shortly a go is expected for the Department of Defense's 10mio usd investment, the delay is mainly caused by Elon Musk's aggressive DOGE policy
- With the recent 20mio usd capital round, Niocorp has enough cash to finish pre-drilling and the feasibility study, the 10mio usd from the dod is a surplus.
- The fact that Niocorp is not in the list of concessions to be financed is because Niocorp already owns all of them
- Pre-drilling has been initiated to confirm the potential of the mine and allow EXIM to approve the financing
- Interim results of the drilling will be announced and hopefully be in that nature to support the share price.
- Meanwhile, the production process has been fine-tuned so that it will have a positive impact on capex, opex and the waiting time to operation
- Additional off-take agreements through the government or private sector are possible and can be part of the financing
- Regarding the final financing, Niocorp has a choice of three parties for debt financing and management is in discussion with at least two major parties for equity financing.
- The first party for debt financing is the German government with a guarantee for 200mio
- A second party is the UK government with an agreement in principle for 200mio financing, 100% guarantee and easily concretized for example through JP Morgan
- A third party is Exim Bank where an 800mio financing is under negotiation, possibly in cash or in guarantee but this only covers 85% so cash seems the ideal choice
- The final financing will be a combination of the three with which the Exim amount can be significantly reduced.
- The question is whether it is not more opportune to increase the debt/equity debt ratio vs. equity to avoid dilution and by better supply/demand to improve the conditions for equity financing.
- The project for REEs with Stellantis is ongoing but delayed due to turmoil and internal changes at Stellantis
- Projects in the UK involving trials of Scandium-Aluminum Alloys are promising and could provide early income were it not for the fact that scandium can only be bought in China
- External ores e.g. Greenland or Ukraine could also be treated by Niocorp but caution should be taken for negative impact on the treatment process.
- Niocorp is aware of Solvay's project to process and recycle REEs important for a circular economy, also Niocorp has these possibilities in a later stage.
- The share price is not really following at the moment mainly because several investors still have a “wait and see” attitude, maybe an opportunity for those who still want to get in

Whooooo hooooo, look at that, we made it to NASDAQ 🤣

I didn't realize we were dropped. Damn that was 2 days after we got our 200M shelf. 🤪

Didn't get that news release I guess. 😆

Hopefully, this time it sticks.

NioCorp Set to Be Added to the Russell 3000 Index
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (May 24, 2023)
https://www.niocorp.com/niocorp-set-to-be-added-to-the-russell-3000-index/
NioCorp Developments Ltd. (“NioCorp” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ:NB) (TSX:NB) is pleased to announce that it is set to join the broad-market Russell 3000 Index at the conclusion of the 2023 Russell indexes annual reconstitution, effective after the US market opens on June 26, 2023, according to a preliminary list of additions posted May 19, 2023.
NioCorp Developments Ltd.(NasdaqGM:NB) dropped from Russell 3000 Index
Published on 06/30/2024 at 18:00
https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/NIOCORP-DEVELOPMENTS-LTD-120793648/news/NioCorp-Developments-Ltd-NasdaqGM-NB-dropped-from-Russell-3000-Index-47297115/
NioCorp Developments Ltd.(NasdaqGM:NB) dropped from Russell 3000 Index

Oh I assume there are not 3000 better companies out there?

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/russell_3000.asp

NB is on the preliminary list to be added to the Russell 3000.

https://www.lseg.com/content/dam/ftse-russell/en_us/documents/other/ru3000-additions-20250523.pdf

https://www.lseg.com/en/ftse-russell/russell-reconstitution

NB closed 5/23/2026 at $2.47 up 2.8% ($0.07) with volume just over 600K. NioCorp closed above the 20, 50 and 300 day moving averages with the MACD momentum indicator just about to turn positive.

https://stockcharts.com/sc3/ui/?s=NB

I am guessing that no institutional investment activity will happen until the drilling is done and the FS is released with final purity, quantities, ***economics***, timelines, etc.... are declared... with the important addition of offtakes also...... Which Institution is gonna jump into this and committ big funds without knowing what the new potential of the mine is.... fund managers get fired for not doing their DD..... they are waiting for the numbers to crunch in their DD.....
tick tock.... tick tock..... '6-9 months'.... reset the clock..... rinse and repeat..... blah blah...
NCT

Just my opinion, but I don't think drilling results for what the market is waiting for. Sounds like off takes are what is needed to get things moving on a financing package, I think those are what move the needle here.

Done ✅ You are welcome Putz!! Let’s end the day strong heading into long weekend:)

The charts are setting up nicely here, looking forward to seeing how it plays out.

https://schrts.co/CSFqqDYZ

https://schrts.co/zwyXzatV

All the best,

Knife

Done. 25,000 just like that!!! Gone

Waits for Bernice.

Someone take it out please.

LAST PRICE
2.4800

Bid / Lots
2.4800/ 158

Ask / Lots
2.5000/ 25,000

Open / Previous Close
2.4100 / 2.4000
Day Range
Low 2.4000High 2.5400

"Hopefully the drilling is what gets this going". I agree.

Clear path? The most recent presentation raised a lot more questions than it answered.

What is quasi equity?

Will it be a loan or a loan guarantee from exim? Does one offer a better rate than the other?

Will 15% of the debt portion come from commercial Banks had a much higher rate?

The UK loan guarantee hinges on the completion of work by a graduate student, when will that be done?

Etc etc

The issue is management has said a whole lot of stuff for a long time. For just as long, people have been wondering what the institutions are waiting for. Your guess is as good as the guesses of the last 10 years. The list you made has been listed and talked about and re talked about for a decade.

Hopefully the drilling is what gets this going, this time. I remember when all we needed was the air permit.

Mark A. Smith has laid out a clear path forward for NioCorp to Elk Creek mine financing. What are the institutional investors waiting for before adding NioCorp to their portfolios?
1) Completion of drilling
2) Completion of drilling results
3) Completion of the updated FS
4) Completion of more offtake agreements
5) Completion of equity financing
6) Completion of debt financing
7) Elk Creek Groundbreaking
8) Start of the Elk Creek mine construction
9) Completion of the Elk Creek mine construction
10) Beginning of production
11) Full scale productiion
12) Or?

I don’t see the Logic in it.
100% cash
85% loan guarantee

ffs

Perhaps we can borrow all of the CapEx if we buy back 400m in crypto. And then we sell the crypto to Qatar

SMH

Does management know if they will get a loan or a loan guarantee from EXIM? Is the possibility of the loan guarantee driving them to look elsewhere? Still trying to process this change to the debt portion of financing. I emailed Jim some questions yesterday and got no response. This is a transcript from the presentation published the other day, Mark saying-

"the one problem with putting all these different government loan programs together is that they are all very different. so XM as an example has two ways that they can support a project one is they can actually provide the cash for the loan amount and the other one is that they'll provide a guarantee.

I want the cash because they pay 100% of the cash whereas if you get a guarantee from them they give you 85% of the amount after they've guaranteed and that means I now have to go out to a commercial Bank and I have to get the other 15% cleared by a commercial Bank and it won't be on the same terms and it won't be the same tenor it'll be very expensive so we want the cash if at all possible.

the United Kingdom export finance group they only provide guarantees but I love them they provide 100% guarantees. so JP Morgan is already told us that this is probably a really hard decision I bet they didn't have to go to their credit committee for this they will they will fund that that United Kingdom export finance amount if we get approval for that 100%"

Much appreciated thanks PutzMueler, like you and the rest waiting for big Bucks and No whammies!!

Mark has really aged since the GXII merger. That deal really screwed everyone over. It’s actually pretty sad how much equity Mark gave up in the company and he’s not even the majority shareholder anymore.

All hail Dean Kehler!

Great finds Gman! Thanks for sharing. This board is still one of the best on ihub imho... Always enjoyed almost all the posts & interactions & who know we may finally be "Close"?? Front row seats with many!

Bipartisan support continues for domestic critical minerals
May 22, 2025
https://www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/minority/at-hearing-warren-and-scott-urge-swift-bipartisan-reauthorization-of-defense-production-act-to-strengthen-our-national-security-supply-chain-resilience-and-ability-to-respond-to-emergencies

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee gave opening remarks at a hearing on “Securing America: Key Authorities Under the Defense Production Act.”
China is also using its leverage over critical supply chains to exert more influence internationally. In recent months, the Chinese government has implemented bans on export of critical minerals and rare-earth magnets to the United States in response to President Trump’s tariffs – and even told countries like South Korea that rely on Chinese inputs that they must stop exporting critical materials and equipment to some U.S. companies.

We don’t need to accept this. We have the tools to reshore critical supply chains. We can deepen cooperation with our allies, and we can build resilience here at home. One tool to help us do that is the Defense Production Act, which we must reauthorize before it lapses in September.

Make critical mineral spending matter this time
May 5

Nice find ge!

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/energysource/make-critical-mineral-spending-matter-this-time/
As part of the $150 billion defense funding boost that the House Armed Services Committee is including in the budget reconciliation bill, approximately $2.5 billion is specifically earmarked for the domestic production and stockpiling of critical minerals.

In the "Big Beautiful Bill"
1 (42) $2,500,000,000 for additional activities to
2 improve the United States production of critical
3 minerals through the National Defense Stockpile,
4 authorized by subchapter III of chapter 5 of title 50,
5 United States Code;
https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid%3AUSC-prelim-title50-chapter5-subchapter3&edition=prelim

That is really great and I look forward to the results. This is the only actual real thing occurring since the the person behind the curtain made us dance for 20M. I look forward to more developments.

See? I remembered to take my pills today.

Target Schedule and Spending Curve (from presentation video)
Mark had previously said that they would be providing updated info to EXIM as it is developed.

My apologies to Scott Honan, as it was his remarks I made my calculations from.

1st rig on-site April 29/25
1st hole finished the day of the Antwerp presentation May 16ish
I added a week for variable depth of holes and times of rough weather.

23 minute mark

3 to 4 weeks I calculate per drill rig per hole from Mark’s Antwerp presentation.

1st hole took 4 weeks from arrival to site.
We now have 2 rigs going 24/7 as per Mark

Between now and end of next year....
I guess including calculations March 26

Take a peak at the MAY 16th ~ Mark Smith Interview on CRUX
MAY 16th, 2025~NioCorp (NASDAQ:NB) – Critical Minerals Project Targets U.S. Supply Chain Security
NioCorp (NASDAQ:NB) – Critical Minerals Project Targets U.S. Supply Chain Security

Mark Smith (@ 8:22 ) ~"We are advancing the project very rapidly right now, I would hope by the end of this year or first quater of 2026 we can have our financing in place..."~



Interview with Mark A. Smith, President & CEO of NioCorp

Recording date: 12th May 2025

NioCorp Developments Ltd. (TSX: NB, NASDAQ: NB) is spearheading a rare example of a fully permitted U.S. critical minerals project. Located in southeast Nebraska, the Elk Creek Project targets four key materials—niobium, scandium, titanium, and magnetic rare earths—all of which the U.S. relies heavily on foreign imports for. With a recent $20 million financing round secured, the company is finalizing engineering studies ahead of a planned Final Investment Decision (FID) by early 2026.


CEO Mark Smith, formerly of Molycorp, is leading a seasoned team with rare earth processing experience. NioCorp has already locked in offtake agreements with major players: Thyssenkrupp and CMC Cometals for niobium, Traxys USA for scandium, and is in talks with Stellantis for rare earths. These contracts help de-risk the project and support future cash flows.

A major pillar of NioCorp’s funding strategy is an $800 million loan from the U.S. EXIM Bank—backed by bipartisan critical minerals policy initiatives. Additional cost-saving engineering updates—such as eliminating a sulfuric acid plant and switching to ramp access—could reduce overall capex by $300 million versus the 2022 feasibility study.

Uniquely, Elk Creek will process all four minerals through one integrated facility, offering diversification and synergies. With construction expected to take three years post-FID and strong support from Nebraska’s government and communities, NioCorp is well-positioned to become a cornerstone of North America’s critical mineral supply chain.

In a geopolitical climate prioritizing domestic mineral production, NioCorp stands out as a near-term, strategic solution with clear market demand, proven permitting, and strong institutional backing. It represents a compelling opportunity for investors seeking exposure to electrification, defense, and reshoring themes.

FORM YOUR OWN OPINIONS & CONCLUSIONS ABOVE:



****ALL OF NOCORP's STRATEGIC MINERALS ARE INDEED CRITICAL FOR THE DEFENSE & PRIVATE INDUSTRIES. THE NEED FOR A SECURE, TRACEABLE, GENERATIONAL ESG DRIVEN MINED SOURCE LOCATED IN NEBRASKA IS PART OF THE SOLUTION!


NIOCORP'S ELK CREEK MINE IS FULLY PERMITTED & STANDS READY TO DELIVER! SEE FOR YOURSELF.


Niocorp's Elk Creek Project is "Standing Tall" & IS READY TO DELIVER.! See for yourself...
https://www.niocorp.com/

~KNOWING WHAT NIOBIUM, TITANIUM, SCANDIUM & RARE EARTH MINERALS CAN DO FOR BATTERIES, MAGNETS, LIGHT-WEIGHTING, AEROSPACE, MILITARY, OEMS, ELECTRONICS & SO MUCH MORE....~

~KNOWING THE NEED TO ESTABLISH A U.S. DOMESTIC, SECURE, TRACEABLE, ESG DRIVEN, CARBON FRIENDLY, GENERATIONAL CRITICAL MINERALS MINING; & A CIRCULAR-ECONOMY & MARKETPLACE FOR ALL~

*ONE WOULD SPECULATE WITH ALL THE SPACE STUFF GOING ON & MORE.....THAT THE U.S. GOVT., DoD -"STOCKPILE", & PRIVATE INDUSTRIES MIGHT BE INTERESTED!!!...??????


Waiting with many to engage..!.

Chico

Greetings!! What kind of time frame should we expect news on current drilling results? Have a good night all.

Those are good questions and I agree with you that this shift in focus raises some eyebrows. You should ask him. I just like the fact that we SHOULD have some definitive answers soon based on the timeline that Scott put out.

Speech and dilution. And $20 million in the bank and drilling and definitive timelines and 5 years of new legislation and tariffs and China export restrictions and global focus on REEs etc. etc. etc. Time have changed, but being a cold dark hole, you may not be able to fully grasp the significance of the current environment? Let there be light!

A graduate student is working on a scandium alloy for Niocorp, when he gets hard data on what scandium does to aluminum it supports project pivot. OEMs in England are very excited about this. Niocorp met with one who said when all that data is finalized they can enter into an off take. That would then make the company eligible for the loan guarantees in England.

This is the gist of what Mark talks about beginning at the 16 minute mark.

My questions for Jim would be, is there a timeline for this whole process, from the completion of The graduate students work to the loan guarantee being in place? Will the loan guarantees from the foreign governments offer an interest rate comparable to what they will get from exim? Will using at least three different sources for the loan component of the finance package be a longer process than going through exim solely? Mark did talk about what a complex puzzle it will be to put together.

It feels really late in the game to be hearing all this for the first time.

Not dishing anything. Just saying that if you asked 4 years ago you would have gotten the same positive tone.

Things are finally happening. So far it's just speech and dilution, but things are happening. C'mon acquisition.

Good thing we will no longer have years of silence and zero progress. A substantive answer is close. I'd rather they offer positivity than dish out doom and gloom now that the wheels are finally turning.

Everyone needs to realize that any question anyone asks will be answered with some kind of positive spin. Even if the positive spin is met with years of silence and zero progress. No questions would ever be answered in the negative from any PR team anywhere.

I dont think a large miner has ever given a single shit about this thing. Weird huh?

Lots of wind lately though.

Super urgent critical minerals crisis. My ass.

So I asked Jim...

On Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at 05:33:56 PM MDT, Jim Sims wrote:

No cold feet on EXIM’s part … just the opposite. But government export credit agencies are often more comfortable on any deal sharing the risk with other ECAs.

It is not likely that additional financing from the German or and/or UK governments will increase the overall debt financing of the project: that’s not likely to exceed $800 million in any case. It all comes down to the level of debt service that this project (or any other) can carry and still be profitable.

NCT, you beat me to it, I was gonna say the same thing 😂
Monocle- I don't usually agree with much that you bring up but on this one i have to agree
This just comes across as odd given the timing. I was hoping any additional loan guarantees could/would be used to negate an equivalent amount of equity/dilution financing. Hopefully this is opening the door to EXIM still being in play for the other $400 million if inflation and additional production costs need to be covered. We could really use some clarity on this.

Monocle- I don't usually agree with much that you bring up but on this one i have to agree..... if EXIM now needs more guarantees on the $780M, it sounds counterintuitive that this could be considered a good thing..... do we think it will be easier herding 3 cats now (i.e., EXIM, British Loan, German Loan) and checking the endless gov't. prereq boxes- when we have had NO luck (and plenty of last minute suprisese like the latest extra DD/drilling that EXIM now requires) in the last 2 yrs. while navigating our current financing plan....... something doesn't add up...... with all the attention garnered from being a 'FLAGSHIP MINE' one would think we would sail right thru the last remaining hurdles on the drilling and new FS issuance....instead of waiting in the back of the line and being thrown breadcrumbs and pissed on.............. why do we suddenly need many more financial entities to mitigate/distribut risk in order to satisfy the DEBT piece of the financing..... and i am still a bit corn-fewzed about the 'quasi equity' (as Mark termed it ) piece of the financing.... are any of the other gubmint agencies (DOD, DOE... etc...) going to step up or is that still a viable option?? this freaking company seems to always snatch defeat out of the jaws of victory.... they seem to have the uncanny ability to fukkk any plan up and make it sound like things are a layup and foregone conclusion to acquire financing! one thing is for sure NOTHING is a layup with this team.... I would LOVE to have a TechMet or MP BUY us out and be done with the never ending '6-9 months more' rinse & repeat cycle.....

Oh and i was just thinking back on everything over the last 3 yrs.... somebody please remind us how the reverse split, SPAC and uplisting to NSDQ benefitted us in ANY WAY unless you think diluting our shares from 300M to 1Billion and making a couple SPAC sharks very equity rich and happy for doing fukkking NOTHING!!! Those GX sharks could have helped us SO MUCH more for their free lottery tickets (after THEY presided over the SPAC merger that went sideways but STILL benefitted them GREATLY!!! What a deal if you can pull that off, huh!!!!??? They hoodwinked our management like snake oil salesmen!! and our mgmt still is not quite sure what the F happened..... Welcome to the world of hi finance sharks with buddy and Gordon Gekko and BlueStar Airlines......those opportunist GX sharks left a BAD TASTE in everyone's mouth.... they could have provided us with a no/low interest loan(s) to finish the drilling a year ago when Mark sprung it on us in a webcast that EXIM needed more DD/Drilling (ever notice how that happens a LOT, i.e., Mark springing things on us in the last minute of the webcasts and then walking away from the mic.....hmmm)
And the NB Beat goes on....... and on....... and on.....and on....... and on.....and on....... and on.....and on....... and on.....and on....... and on.....

Just a 'few more weeks'/months/quarters/years Folks!!!
cuz we are now a frikkkin' 'FRANCHISE MINE' Drew Horn says......how about treating us like a franchise mine instead of leftover meatloaf..... G Zusssssss!!

Yaddddda freakin' yadddda....

You would think some major miner wanting in on the Critical mineral boom, would want us Lock stock and barrel, and pony up.

True, but we were told exim's interest rate is well below market. There could be substantial extra costs if 400 million in loans is subject to market rates

Lol and also😱

Not trying to stir anything up, I was just caught off guard

I’m sure the US government is just trying to save their money so they can buy Canada Greenland Ukraine and Vietnam with the other $400m

Maybe. Ha ha

While I think you often raise valid questions here, this seems like a nothingburger to me. Lenders like to spread risk if they can.

I thought they were getting such a fantastic rate through exim? Why shop elsewhere?

I'm just wondering why so far into the process with exim Mark is talking about lenders being nervous about lending so much to accompany with such a small market cap. How it would be helpful to spread the risk of around the three different entities.

Not seeking the full amount from exim seems like a pretty radical, and potentially time-consuming, change in direction and I found it jarring.